Shoko's Music (II): Special Female Voices

The other day, Mulan and I were having a chat about female singers with distinctive voices. Whitney Houston's name came up; so did Sade Adu's, as did Tracy Chapman's. The discussion got me thinking about other female singers with voices which were so distinctive that you could spot them in a hundred-person choir. It's not as easy as it sounds, because most people trying to make a career of singing tend to model their voices on successful singers' voices rather than doing their own thing. But two voices stand out for me.

The first singer is Heather Small, who was the front person for the incredibly successful British dance group M-People, who gave the music world songs like 'Search For The Hero' and 'Open Your Heart'. But the song I'll choose to showcase Ms. Small's voice is my favourite - 'Moving On Up'

YouTube - M People - Moving On Up


Morcheeba were another British trip-hop group who had modest success in the nineties, (though they never achieved the popularity of M People). Their lead singer, Skye Edwards has a voice that I'd probably describe as husky, dreamy or sultry, and which I would definitely describe as distinctive. Here she is, singing on the opening track from their 'Big Calm' album, 'The Sea'.